Anyone have any of the Zegna Fibre Nobili fabrics?

[Artisan Fan]

Just wondering how they do for suits...thanks.

 

[Pariolino]

I find zegna fabrics to be like all other Italian cloth. Flimsy, lacking body and style and doomed to die a fast death. You should look at some of the English mills for your next suit. I fear that Zegna cloth is low rent with a good name. Lipstick on a pig.

 

[texas_jack]

Tell us how you really feel.

 

[Artisan Fan]

Originally Posted by Pariolino

I find zegna fabrics to be like all other Italian cloth. Flimsy, lacking body and style and doomed to die a fast death. You should look at some of the English mills for your next suit. I fear that Zegna cloth is low rent with a good name. Lipstick on a pig.

Nice thread crap buddy. And highly inaccurate. My Zegna fabrics has held up as well as much pricier offerings from England.

 

[Pariolino]

Originally Posted by Artisan Fan

Nice thread crap buddy. And highly inaccurate. My Zegna fabrics has held up as well as much pricier offerings from England.
Not sure what a thread crap is, but I don't most fabric gurus and tailors greatly prefer English fabrics to Italian ones?

 

[imageWIS]

Um, it was the Italians that managed to take those turn of the century, heavy English woolens and turn them into the fabric you know today. The Italians nowadays run mill production lines as well if not better than the English, and they certainly have more money to spend on R&D and the latest machines. Also, the water in Italy tends to be better than in England, which helps in the production process to make a better finished product (why do you think Zegna owns Oasi Zegna?).

Jon.

 

[xarope]

Originally Posted by Pariolino

I find zegna fabrics to be like all other Italian cloth. Flimsy, lacking body and style and doomed to die a fast death. You should look at some of the English mills for your next suit. I fear that Zegna cloth is low rent with a good name. Lipstick on a pig.

That's a very surprising comment. Zegna are, if nothing else, known for the quality of their fabric. You may be referring to their Z Zegna line of apparel, which are targetted to the bottom end of the market and hence suffers in quality as with all other brands. But their Su Misura MTM and Couture line are as good as any out there at that price range.

 

[SGladwell]

Originally Posted by Artisan Fan

Nice thread crap buddy. And highly inaccurate. My Zegna fabrics has held up as well as much pricier offerings from England.

Well, there's one thing in the world at least upon which we agree.

I have Zegna suits (MTM for my father) from as early as 1984 that I wear fairly regularly and the fabric could still pass for new.

 

[Pariolino]

Knock yourself out guys. Don't say old Pariolino didn't try to help.

If I had to pick a Zegna fabric, I would shy away from the nobili because it is their lighweight superfine paper stuff. Better to get some body.

A lot of tailors in this world, even and perhaps especially in Italy, cringe at the idea of working with Italian cloth. There is the odd good piece here and there. Even some good from Zegna, but it is hard to find and not the stuff used in their own line.

 

[username79]

Originally Posted by Pariolino

Knock yourself out guys. Don't say old Pariolino didn't try to help.

If I had to pick a Zegna fabric, I would shy away from the nobili because it is their lighweight superfine paper stuff. Better to get some body.

A lot of tailors in this world, even and perhaps especially in Italy, cringe at the idea of working with Italian cloth. There is the odd good piece here and there. Even some good from Zegna, but it is hard to find and not the stuff used in their own line.

I agree. In fact, when I need a new suit, I go out to a local farm and shear a few llamas. The resulting cloth is heavy and thick, but no tailor I know of would use anything less, let alone something from a foreign country.

 

[T4phage]

Originally Posted by Pariolino

Knock yourself out guys. Don't say old Pariolino didn't try to help.

If I had to pick a Zegna fabric, I would shy away from the nobili because it is their lighweight superfine paper stuff. Better to get some body.

A lot of tailors in this world, even and perhaps especially in Italy, cringe at the idea of working with Italian cloth. There is the odd good piece here and there. Even some good from Zegna, but it is hard to find and not the stuff used in their own line.

In general I would agree. Most of the cloth that is used in Zegna's own clothing tend to be the high counts, lightweight stuff. To be somewhat fair, most of their cloth is a reflection of what their customers (including other clothing manufacturers) want and order. However, as Pariolino stated above, there ARE some good stuff from Zegna, but it is not what you will usually find in their own clothes. It may be special orders by fabric stores, but I have seen and bought some woolen flannels that are NICER than those from Fox and Minnis, also some very dense and heavy 15mil mil of approximately 16oz.

 

[Artisan Fan]

However, as Pariolino stated above, there ARE some good stuff from Zegna, but it is not what you will usually find in their own clothes. It may be special orders by fabric stores, but I have seen and bought some woolen flannels that are NICER than those from Fox and Minnis, also some very dense and heavy 15mil mil of approximately 16oz.

I can tell you the 15 MilMil 15 fabrics are very nice in drape and very durable. They are my go to suits for when I want to not dress as sharp for the audience as my Kitons and Brioni allow.

Still this was a question of whether anyone has tried these nicer fabrics, not a comment on English v. Italian quality in mills. I think both produce superb fabrics these days.

 

[Pariolino]

Originally Posted by Artisan Fan

I can tell you the 15 MilMil 15 fabrics are very nice in drape and very durable. They are my go to suits for when I want to not dress as sharp for the audience as my Kitons and Brioni allow.

Still this was a question of whether anyone has tried these nicer fabrics, not a comment on English v. Italian quality in mills. I think both produce superb fabrics these days.
Just to be clear he was referring to a specific and tiny subset of 15 mil mil fabrics which are double the weight of most of them, and not the regular 15 mil mil 15 stuff. There is a big difference, so I would not take his response as confirmation of your original opinion, rather as confirmation of mine.

As I read the question, it was what do you think of this kind of cloth. I answered that question. I don't think much of it at all.

 

[T4phage]

Originally Posted by Artisan Fan

I can tell you the 15 MilMil 15 fabrics are very nice in drape and very durable. They are my go to suits for when I want to not dress as sharp for the audience as my Kitons and Brioni allow.

Still this was a question of whether anyone has tried these nicer fabrics, not a comment on English v. Italian quality in mills. I think both produce superb fabrics these days.

Originally Posted by Pariolino

Just to be clear he was referring to a specific and tiny subset of 15 mil mil fabrics which are double the weight of most of them, and not the regular 15 mil mil 15 stuff. There is a big difference, so I would not take his response as confirmation of your original opinion, rather as confirmation of mine.

As I read the question, it was what do you think of this kind of cloth. I answered that question. I don't think much of it at all.
Artisan Fan, Pariolino is correct. The Zegna's that I thought were very good were not the stuff that they use in their own suits. My feeling is that certain fabric stores order runs to their specification. I have yet to see a 15milmil for winter that is over 14oz, or flannels at that from Zegna's own clothing range.

 

[RJman]

Lesser is more.